North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Un, I feel, is still a little too young for the job. However, his basketball buddy, Dennis Rodman, probably has done more for opening up the North Korean society than anybody. Good job, Dennis! The latest coup d'etat out of this bastion of Communism is the internet attack on Sony. The North Korean leaders did not like the comedy, The Interview, Sony had made. So, they attacked/hacked the Sony website and made a lot of people uncomfortable. Over the last two weeks, mysteriously, the North Korean internet was disabled. Hmm. I guess, some people were really uncomfortable! The real news story is this. Who cares? This entire news cycle for over two weeks has treated this as an global event. Not! The issue is not newsworthy and I am uncomfortable even writing about it. It is beyond silly.The simple way to solve this problem is to send Mr. Rodman back over to North Korea and make nice. Basketball diplomacy is much more prudent and effective than listening to the dribble out of the news media here in the U.S. In fact, rumor has it that Kim Jong Un might even get a tattoo! That's the way I see it, today, December 29th, 2014.

It is not a Merry Christmas in Russia. The ruble, Russia's currency, has fallen over 50%. Think about that. What if every dime in your pocket was now worth a nickle. Don't kid yourself if you think this is no big deal. It is. Last night, Vladimir Putin called an emergency conference of all of his government. No vacation for them. With the collapse of oil prices worldwide, Russia now faces probably one of its biggest challenges since the fall of the Soviet Union. How bad is it? It is so bad that there is a possibility of war. The perception in Moscow is simple. Europe and the United States declared economic war on the largest country on the planet. So, what happens when you corner a bear? It will lash out in order to defend itself. All the politicians should be very careful over the next few months. World War Two was preceded by an economic collapse called the "depression." Putin has always been unpredictable. He may be "crazy" from our point of view, but he is not stupid. Nobody likes instability. The "markets" don't like it, governments don't like it, and the "people" don't like it. The "West" is barely balancing its own books right now, destroying the economy of the "Russian Bear" may prove to much. The entire "system" might collapse. It also might give Putin an excuse to take the rest of Ukraine. That's how I see it, today, December 27th, 2014.

A Jordanian pilot, Moaz al-Kassasheh, went down over Syria yesterday. He was part of the "coalition" fighting ISIS. He survived, but now is a prisoner. His family, of course, have asked for his release. Everything we know about this new enemy, ISIS, releasing this warrior is not likely. Since they are a terror group, and quite good at terror, they will probably use him for their own nefarious purposes. I don't know Moaz, but I am on his side. I pray for his safe return, regardless of the obstacles. The Islamic world now sits on a precipice. On one side, you have the moderates. On the other side, you have the radicals. For a long time both of these sides chose not to fight each other. In fact, they supported each other outright. All that has changed now. In the post 9/11 post Arab spring world, all bets are off the table. It is more than Sunni vs Shiite. It is now about right and wrong. Morality is coming into play. Outsiders looking in can clearly distinguish between the two. In fact, even the insiders are having to choose sides. Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Oman, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, etc. all have to make crucial decisions. Those decisions could make or break them. The West, rightly or wrongly, has decided to let them duke it out. The world military industrial complex will support them, as long as they can pay, but it will no longer offer its young men for battle. The U.S. has pulled out of Iraq, out of Afghanistan, and is now playing "power broker." Russia, too busy with its own survival and will be taking on a smaller role. 2014 certainly has left all of us with a new game to watch. I hope somebody is paying attention. That's the way I see it, today, December 25th, 2014.

Over the past week I have been overwhelmed with a business adventure. Last night, I had time to turn on the T.V. I heard the news about two NYC police officers being assassinated. All the race baiting by the politicians and the media have now resulted in the death of two of New York City's finest. I sometimes wonder if people really care about one another. It seems that, time and time again, greed and motivations for selfish purposes outweigh what is really important. Only now, with the deaths of these two officers, do people really start to understand the consequences of their actions. Irresponsible politicians, media running amuk, and fanning the flames of emotions can lead to terrible consequences. It is now Hanukkah and Christmas is just around the corner. I urge each and every one of my readers to take time out this holiday season and reflect on the year. We can all do better. This includes me. I will offer no platitudes of words without meaning. Instead, look around and take notice of what is going on. Create a sense of urgency in your life to challenge yourself, make yourself and the world around you better. Life is full of daily challenges. Remember, it is not what happens to you that matters, rather, it is how you will respond. My condolences to the families of the officers who died protecting our society. That's how I see it, today, December 21st, 2014.

Oil, baby! For over a decade now the public has been led toward the idea that we should pay out the nose for a gallon of gas. I remember just a year and a half ago I was paying over five dollars a gallon in California. Today, a buck 99! All pointers indicate that a barrel of oil will hit fifty dollars, down from over one hundred, at the end of the year. Right now, Americans alone have an extra 100 million dollars to spend on phones and TVs! So what gives? We are told that it is because of fracking. As Starbuck would say, "What the Frack?" O.K., I will give a little attaboy to North Dakota and the fracking industry. But let's be realistic. Low prices hurt their business model. He is the most simple explanation. The world powers that be, who ever you think they might be, have decided that they will curtail the political ambitions of Iran and Russia by destroying their economies. And, it is working. The ruble is crashing. Iran is finding it harder to pay for their nuclear bomb development. Whether this course of action indeed works or not is another variable. We all are quite familiar with "unintended consequences." Maybe the Mullahs should reconsider why they want to nuke Israel? Maybe Russia should have second thoughts about taking over the Crimea and invading Ukraine. I'm just saying! Oil, baby! Money talks and evidently, bullshit walks. That's the way I see it, today, December 14th, 2014.

FYI: the latest rumor is that the Saudis are holding down the price of oil in order to bankrupt the independent frackers! What the Frack? Also, the airline industry is making a killing. They have not adjusted airfares to reflect the current price of jet fuel!

Jonathan Gruber, a name that will go down in infamy. Not. Even after he appeared under a subpoena in front of Congress today, he was able to hide behind his lawyers. Gee, I guess you can afford a good attorney when you swindle the tax payer's for six million dollars. Good job, Jon! So, who is this guy? He is an "insider" from MIT who teaches economics. He was hired by the Democrats to create, push forth, and lie to the American public about the Affordable Health Care Act, ObamaCare. It was and is a twenty-three hundred page document which was rammed through Congress. Now, today, health care policies for everyone have increased. Deductibles have now doubled or more. More people are doing without health care than before passing the law. Millions of policies have been cancelled. Health care HMO's are now making more money than ever, in fact, the stocks of the top five have gone up over 3-400 percent. Oh, did I mention, most of the members of Congress now own stocks in those companies? Go figure. In addition, you CAN'T keep your doctor. In a shocking example of graf and corruption, Mr. Gruber was not arrested. He purposely mislead the American public after being given guidance by the White House. The "American people are too stupid to know what is going on," he said. Well, today, after one of the most off sided elections since World War Two, the life span and general health of ObamaCare now seems to be in jeopardy. It seems to appear that the Democratic Party can no longer afford the premium! Good job! That's the way I see it, today, December 9th, 2104.

Well, today I am in a conundrum. I really can not figure out the motivations of the Democratic Party. It has already been stated, by the Democratic Party no less, that, for "political reasons," they are going to go public with the so-called CIA torture report. They are doing this just three weeks shy of the Democratic Party losing control of the Senate due to the last election. To be clear, you must understand what this action means. First, in their own words, it is a "political move." Second, tonight, the United States was forced to put every single one of our embassies worldwide on "terror alert." This is because the "torture report" is so damning that our government fears worldwide riots against us. Let me repeat. Our government, for "political reasons," is endangering every U.S. citizen worldwide and is doing so willingly. This means that Barack Obama, Diane Feinstein, and the Democratic party are committing treason. If even one American dies tomorrow it will be because of the stupidity of the Democratic political hacks. In all sincerity, whether you are a Democrat or Republican, this CIA torture report should be classified. Period. Hell, there are still classified documents about World War Two! In order for any government to function, there has to be a little bit of common sense. Indeed, the general public should never be privy to everything that goes on behind closed doors. So, in summary, the Democratic party is willing to risk your life in order to damage the other party. SHAME ON THEM! Shame on all the people in the federal government for letting this absolute travesty happen! I am really not that smart of a guy, but I do know the difference between right and wrong. If my memory serves me correctly, treason warrants an arrest. Back to my conundrum. I really do not understand the motivation behind this move, do you? If so, contact me, so I don't feel so stupid. That's the way I see it, today, December 8th, 2014. By the way, another American was murdered by Al-Qaeda yesterday. His name was Luke Somers, a photo-journalist.

America, America...most people can't remember the rest of the words, can you? Does it matter? Do you care? "What difference does it make?" to quote Hillary Clinton. Certainly, a lot has changed in the post 9/11 world. Take aviation, for instance. Today, we have the government controlling a new organization called the TSA. Supposedly, we are a lot safer now because of them. In truth, nothing has really changed outside of the fact that the government now has a new huge department. Google can not even tell you how many employees the TSA has under its umbrella. Must be classified, I guess. Since 9/11 the political pendulum has swung from the right to the left, avoiding the middle at all costs. The only real benefit of this structure of chaos is to keep everybody on their toes. Even the bad guys around the world who hate the U.S. can't figure it out. If you don't believe me at this juncture, take a look at gas prices. The American public was led to believe that we were suppose to get used to paying over five dollars for a gallon of gas. Today, in Oklahoma, you can buy gas for your car at a 1.99 a gallon! So much for that prediction! The good news about this besides Americans can now buy more food, is that the bad guys who depend on high oil prices are taking it in the shorts! Swing! Putin and the Mullahs probably didn't see that one coming. Another unforeseen benefit of the post 9/11 world is our military. Whether you like it or not is not the point. Today, after spending ka-trillions of dollars the United States has a super high tech, kick-ass military that will just go about anywhere on the planet to let you know who's boss. Go figure. So, here we sit, with the Dow Jones pushing 18,000, ISIS beheading Americans, riots in NYC, Democrats trounced in the last election, and gas prices going under two dollars a gallon. WHAT'S GOING ON? That's the way I see it, December 5th, 2014.

This is Zemir Begic and his fiancee. He was 32 years old, an immigrant from Bosnia some twenty years ago. He lived in St. Louis, Missouri, and was killed two days ago when a pack of black teenagers bludgeoned him to death with hammers. Evidently, the "teenagers" attacked him, his fiancee and another while they were sitting in their car. The "news media" is ignoring the entire incident because it does not seem to fit the "racial war" they are responsible for initiating. Now people are dying. Tonight, on the heals of a New York grand jury verdict the entire nation is sitting on a firebomb. It is possible, not unlikely at all, that the race baiting by Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Eric Holder, and Barack Obama will take its toll on the United States. Riots are on the verge of breaking out in New York City as I write this column. Charles Barkley, the athlete, has come out in defense of the Ferguson verdict and has asked the black community to start taking responsibility for their own lives. He is currently under attack now from the "liberal media" for not taking their position. Let us pray that cool heads prevail, however, if the Federal Government continues to push a biased agenda, more chaos could be knocking at our doors. Facts are facts. But, at this moment, facts are irrelevant. What is driving the agenda is emotion. Emotion has always been more powerful than reason. That is why the "founding fathers" wrote and signed the Constitution, to keep emotion in "check." That's how I see it today, December 3rd, 2014. My heartfelt condolences to the family of Mr. Begic.